The Alphabet Story
by AussieGal20
Summary: As the title implies: A series of unrelated one-shots centered around a word starting with each letter of the alphabet. Following a general timeline. AU - Rizzles of course. Disclaimers apply to all chapters within. Please read and review: Any and all ideas or suggestions you have are welcomed.
1. A is for Anonymous

**Disclaimer:** Characters are not mine.

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**The Alphabet Story**

_A is for Anonymous_

~oOo~

Jane is walking around the kitchen of the Beacon Hill brownstone home making herself a coffee, with only the company Jo Friday and Bass - Maura's beloved African Spurred Tortoise, _not_ a turtle. Jane had only moved in recently, but it felt as though she'd lived there for years.

"You've been here for 20 hours Rizzoli, go home and get some rest, that's an order," Jane grumpily mimics Cavanaugh as she stomped her way up the stairs. "I don't need any damn rest."

Besides, Maura was still at work and Jane felt as though she should be there too. Regardless of the intention that Cavanaugh, Korsak and Maura sent her home with, Jane makes her way into the study on the second floor with a steaming mug of coffee fully prepared to do something useful, rather than waste her time resting.

She sits in the large leather chair behind the even larger mahogany desk and started going through the case files she brought home to work on when she couldn't sleep, or had nothing else to do. Jane worked solidly on paperwork, transcribing interrogations, or statements, or interviews and before she knew it, three hours had passed. She keeps working, hoping that she could finish the paperwork for at least three cases, before she noticed that it had gotten steadily darker outside. With a glance at the clock, Jane realises that Maura would be finishing soon.

She stands up and stretches, ready to go down stairs and make a new cup of coffee and clear away whatever mess she had undoubtedly left in the kitchen, knowing Maura will be disappointed in seeing it upon arriving home. As Jane heads out of the room, Jo Friday whines a little, disappointed in her company leaving, but made no move to follow. Once the new coffee was brewed and the mess cleared, Jane walked slowly upstairs again, ready to get back into the little paperwork remaining. As Jane enters the study, a mess that could only have been caused by a mini tornado greeted her.

"Jo," Jane softly admonishes her wiry terrier, who had jumped onto the desk spreading sheets of paper everywhere.

"How on earth did you get up here?" Jane grumbles as she tidies up the mess of papers. The majority of the papers were the case files she had been working on for hours. Other pieces of paper were mixed in with them, and Jane methodically separated them and sat them off to the side. She looks at the top sheet of paper and noticed that it was a receipt Maura had kept for the mattress they had bought together last week.

Jane opens the bottom draw of the desk and files it away with all the other receipts before it could get lost. Her curiosity peaked when she saw just how many receipts Maura had kept and filed away. She picks them up and started to go through them. Most were fairly uninteresting, appliances or items for around the home.

Jane was about to put them away when she saw the next receipt. _Cradles to Crayons_ was written at the top of the receipt and she takes it out of the bundle to examine further. The first thing she notices was the amount of money spent, but what strikes her most is what is printed under 'name of donor'. Not only does Maura donate to local charities, but also does it anonymously. Maura is a donor to the charity _Cradles to Crayons_ named 'anonymous'. Jane's heart swells with a mixture of love and pride at this newly found information and is just putting the receipts away when the the front door opened and closed, announcing Maura's arrival.

"Jane," Maura calls from entrance hall.

Jane walks slowly out of the study and down the stairs to greet Maura.

"Hey Maura." Jane meets Maura halfway down the staircase.

A blush appears on Maura's cheeks as the receipt still in Jane's hand is revealed. Jane leans in and kisses Maura passionately to show her love and admiration.

~oOo~

Today, Jane found out that her rich girlfriend donates anonymously to a local charity. Jane loves her.


	2. B is for Bored

**Disclaimer:** Characters are not mine.

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**The Alphabet Story**

_B is for Bored_

~oOo~

Jane sat at the breakfast bar, sipping her instant coffee, eating straight out of a box of coco puffs and reading over the sports section of the newspaper. Totally engrossed in the article, Jane completely misses Maura entering the room and greeting her with a still groggy smile and 'good morning.' Jane moves onto the TV guide for the next week as Maura moves around the kitchen preparing her breakfast.

"Jane, how on earth do you keep sneaking instant coffee into my kitchen? And where on earth did you hide that box of pure sugar?" Maura admonishes. Jane barely hears her however, because her mind is in full denial as she looks over the TV guide for today.

_No way, it can't be,_ Jane thinks to herself. _I would never have forgotten about this_. Boston Red Sox is playing and the game is being aired live. Amidst the busy week she'd had, Jane certainly had forgotten. A grin spread across her face as she catches Maura's eye and sees her staring expectantly.

"Jane, are you even listening to me?" Maura complains. "As I was saying, the documentary is all about Marie Curie's life and scientific works and it sounds so exciting, there's going to be a huge segment on her work isolating radium and I've been looking forward to it for weeks, please Jane?" Maura begs her girlfriend to watch with her.

Jane's grin falls as she looks at the TV guide in her hands and sees that the documentary is on at the same time as the Red Sox game. When Maura sees Jane's grin fall, her hopefulness shatters immediately, thinking Jane is denying her request.

Never having been able to deny Maura anything - especially when she looks so miserable, Jane quickly forces a smile on her face before agreeing.

"Sure Maura, anything for you," Jane says in a strangled voice and pecks her girlfriend on the cheek.

Maura doesn't seem to notice Jane's less than convincing tone though, and suddenly Jane is almost knocked off of her chair as Maura wraps her body around Jane, covering her face with kisses. The rest of the morning is spent with Maura talking animatedly about the upcoming documentary as she cleaned and Jane sitting at the breakfast bar, trying not to look too despondent as she mourned the loss of her baseball game.

When the time came to watch the documentary, Maura was almost bouncing in excitement and all but dragged Jane toward the couch.

"Hang on Maura, I really need to pee first, give me a minute," Jane excuses herself from her girlfriend's observant eyes so she could discreetly text her brother.

_Hey Frankie, it's me. Maura wants to watch some documentary together, can you record the Red Sox game for me? – J._

Jane stands in the bathroom, anxiously awaiting Frankie's reply. She realised it had been quite a while so she flushed the toilet so Maura, wouldn't be suspicious and as she reached to turn on the tap, her phone buzzed in her hand.

_You're totally whipped, but sure, I'll record it. – F._

Some time later, Jane and Maura are still watching the documentary, Jane sitting on the couch with her long legs tucked under her, while Maura sat in almost perfect posture, watching the television screen avidly. Jane is hardly concentrating on the documentary though, instead mulling over today events. Jane admits to herself that missing the Red Sox game live wasn't _all_ bad because while Maura's eyes have not once left the screen for the entire duration of the documentary, Jane's eyes had barely left Maura's face, watching it in various states of excitement the whole time.

~oOo~

Today, Jane watched a very boring documentary on the life and works of a scientist instead of a baseball game her favourite team was playing in. She spent the entire time watching her girlfriend watch said documentary with the biggest smile on her face. Jane loves her.


	3. C is for Chess

**Disclaimer:** Rizzoli and Isles is not mine.

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**The Alphabet Story**

_C is for Chess_

~oOo~

Maura is sitting at the small table in the corner of the living room facing Jane with a chess board laid out between them, chess pieces standing randomly across the board. Maura stared at her pieces, a small frown etched on her face as she went through every possible move she could make. This was the first time Maura and Jane had ever played chess together, and Maura was determined to win. Maura, still staring at the board, hears Jane growl, and looks up to see frustration all over her face.

"Come on Maura, it's not like its rocket science," Jane whines, not even bothering to hide her boredom and frustration from her girlfriend.

Maura completely ignores Jane's discontent and turns her focus back to the chessboard. Maura has gone through all the possibilities and has found seven viable moves.

Four of these moves end with Maura taking one of Jane's pieces, but leaves her King and Queen wide open for attack. Two moves are dummy moves that achieve absolutely nothing and the last option Maura could make is sacrificing her rook to destroy Jane's defences. Maura contemplates this last move the most, having never really thought about the debate _is it okay to sacrifice the lives of the few to save the lives of the many?_

Maura's immediate answer is no, but this is chess, not real life so the issue requires a little more thought. Maura moves back and forth between two different option and had almost decided when Jane groans again and glares in frustration. Maura's hand hovers over the piece she intends to move, but after seeing Jane's overly exaggerated eye roll, her mind is set and goes in for the kill.

Maura sacrifices her rook, because she wants to win and she's a winner through and through. Jane looks positively gleeful as Maura lets go of her rook - whether it's because she had finally moved a piece, or because she can now add to the small collection of your captured pieces. Jane only takes a few seconds to take the rook as Maura had predicted she would and then it's back to Maura. Jane leans back in her chair, ready for Maura to take her own sweet time. Again. Maura looks at the board and sees a myriad of choices to choose from and tries to decide on what would enable the quickest end to this game because, after all, Jane does want her to hurry.

Maura moves a Bishop and almost immediately, Jane counters with her own move and it's back to Maura's turn. Maura calculates the different possibilities and concludes that she can have Jane checkmated in five moves, depending on the counter moves Jane makes. Maura runs through the different moves Jane could make to counter each of hers, based on the moves Jane had already played in the game, and adjusts her own future moves accordingly.

Maura decides on a piece and all of a sudden, Jane is sitting straight up in her chair, as opposed to the slouch she had assumed before, and moves a piece Maura had not expected. Maura glances up confused, and is met with Jane's steely gaze, the same gaze she uses on the suspects she is trying to intimidate. Jane's gaze while intimidating gives nothing away, and Maura has to adjusts her approach.

As soon as Maura lets go of her next piece, Jane moves another and all of a sudden, Maura has lost some of the power she previously had. Maura looked over the board, analysing all of her possible moves. Maura decides to switch tactics and focus on weakening Jane's defences again. Maura looks up to see Jane's body shaking with the effort of holding in laughs, but then a chuckle escapes. Maura has no idea what has Jane so amused, but as soon as she makes another move, Jane's chuckles have morphed into full-blown laughter. Maura looks down at the chessboard again and immediately realises her mistake. Jane can checkmate Maura in two moves and there is nothing Maura can do to stop it. Maura realises her mistake. The last few moves, Maura had been focusing solely on her own moves, and not Jane's as she had been moving them seemingly at random. What Maura didn't know, was that Jane is quite good at chess and had been fooling her the entire time.

Maura flicks her King over in defeated and huffs.

"I want a rematch," Maura demands, arm crossed and frowning.

"What? And spend another two hours watching you stare at a chessboard and do nothing? I don't think so," Jane denies Maura's request.

"You cheated," Maura states. All she is met with is a snort.

"Hiding skills is not cheating Maura," Jane says, a smug smile on her face.

"Yes it is," Maura decides, because she hadn't lost a game since she was 10 years old and she wasn't about to now.

~oOo~

Today, Maura played a game of chess with Jane for the first time and she gave her a run for her money. Maura loves her.


	4. D is for Dessert

**Disclaimer:** Characters are not mine.

**Author's Notes:** Hey everyone, I just wanted to ask a huge favour of all of you. I'm having trouble coming up with a scenario for 'M' so if you had any ideas (words or scenarios) I would be extremely grateful. You will of course be credited if I use your idea, Thank you in advance.

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**The Alphabet Story**

_D is for Dessert_

~oOo~

Jane is currently sitting on the couch in the lounge room, her eyes transfixed on the television, watching a ball game as her girlfriend is in the kitchen helping her mother cook the weekly Sunday lunch.

"Jane, get up and help, lunch isn't going to cook itself," Angela nags her daughter.

"Ma," Jane begins to whine that she only gets one day off a week and wants to spend it relaxing, but before she can continue, Maura had interrupted.

"Angela, it's fine, Jane can relax if she wants too, I think we have everything all under control here. Besides, she'll probably just get in the way."

Jane shrinks back into the couch, glad she doesn't have to help and proud of Maura for being able to stand up to Angela.

As she continues watching the game, Jane finds herself more and more distracted by the sounds coming from the kitchen, and gives up on listening to the commentators, instead, focusing on the voices of the two most important women in her life. Angela is teaching Maura the best ways to prep and cook lasagne. Jane can hear the excitement in Angela's voice at finally having a daughter she can pass her knowledge on to and can almost feel Maura's excitement at being accepted into Jane's family with open arms.

Jane can smell the mouth-watering aroma's emanating from the kitchen and she slowly lifts herself off the couch and quietly makes her way towards the kitchen, fully prepared to sneak a taste. Maura and Angela were facing away from Jane and as she leaned over ready to dip her fingers in the lasagne meat, she was startled by her mother's voice.

"Don't you even think about it Jane," Angela says, without even turning around.

"Oh, Ma, how did you even know I was there?" Jane whines.

"Because I know you Jane Rizzoli, stay out of it," Angela orders again, while Maura tries her best to hold in her giggles.

Jane slunk back into the lounge room and eventually the TV captivated her attention again when suddenly, Angela's voice pierces the air.

"Oh no, we're out of strawberries Maura."

"Are you sure? I bought two punnets and we haven't used that many," Maura says quizzically.

"No, they're all gone Maura," Angela's voice is panicky.

"That's fine, I'll run down to the store quickly," Maura says as she moves towards her keys in the front hall.

"No, no, you stay here and keep an eye out on the lasagne in the oven, I'll be right back," Angela says and hurries out the front door.

As soon as the front door clicks shut, Jane feels Maura's hands running up and down her arms and her lips pressed to the top of Jane's head. Jane tilts her head up to meet Maura's lips and they kiss deeply until Maura pulls away.

"You ate the strawberries," she states.

When Jane opens her mouth to protest Maura playfully glares at her. "Don't bother Jane Rizzoli I know you too."

Maura walks back into the kitchen, preparing the ingredients she does have for dessert and Jane realises then and there that Maura really does look sexy in the kitchen. Jane can imagine one other scenario where Maura would look twice as hot as she does now, so Jane abandons the comfort of the couch and baseball game and makes her way to the breakfast bar. As soon as Maura's back is turned, Jane grabs a handful of flour and flings it at her.

"Jane." Maura's voice has moved from its usual high-pitched whine to a lower sort of growl. Jane laughs at the sight of her normally immaculately dressed girlfriend coated in flour all down her back and in her hair. When Maura turns around though, Jane immediately stops laughing and cowers slightly when she takes in the exasperated expression on Maura's face. Maura slowly slinks towards Jane, but instead of being chastised for her behaviour and ordered to clean up the mess she had just made, Jane's face is suddenly full of flour, and before she can fully register what has happened, Maura's hand is shoving more down the front of her shirt.

And so the great flour fight of the Rizzoli-Isles residence begins. Almost half an hour passes before Angela arrives back home and the look of shock on her face as she sees her two daughters rolling around on the floor and flour covering every surface in the kitchen, sends Jane and Maura into a fit of giggles.

Angela half-heartedly reprimands the two women for their immaturity, but she can't feel too mad, because it's the happiest she's seen her daughter in a long time. So with a smile on her face, Angela helps Jane and Maura to their feet and the three set to cleaning up the mess.

~oOo~

Today, Jane watched as Maura cooked lunch and dessert for the weekly Sunday Rizzoli lunch. When Jane started a flour fight, Maura didn't yell like Jane expected, instead, shoved flour in her face and down her shirt. Jane loves her.


	5. E is for Elegant

**Disclaimer:** Rizzoli and Isles is not mine.

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**The Alphabet Story**

_E is for Elegant_

~oOo~

Maura is standing in her closet staring at the multitude of clothes she owns.

"Jane please, I need help deciding," Maura begged her girlfriend.

"I don't know Maura, why don't you ask me again _after_ six o'clock in the morning?" Jane grumbles from her slouched position in the middle of their bed. Maura is fretting because she has still not decided on her attire for tonight and has to leave for work in just over an hour's time.

"Please will you come Jane?" Maura begs her girlfriend for what seems like the millionth time to accompany her to the benefit dinner and auction held by the charity the Isles family donates to regularly, but Jane remains steadfast in her decision.

"Nope, sorry Maura."

Maura hates going to these benefits alone, she hates going period, but she must, because it is expected of her, and having Jane by her side would make the time pass that much quicker. Maura had tried begging, whining, offering compromises, and offering herself for the last week, but Jane had still refused.

Maura understood Jane's reasons for not wanting to go; Maura had been born into high society and have been surrounded by the type of people at the benefit all her life, but Jane certainly had not. Not to mention, Maura was also well aware of Jane's dislike and almost hatred towards people who are entitled and her discomfort at being thrust into their company.

Maura growls in frustration; at Jane, at herself, at her family name, and at her closet for not magically choosing an outfit for her. In the end, Maura settles on a highly expensive outfit and hangs it over the door, ready to go when she got home from work that afternoon.

"Please." Maura tries begging Jane one more time and completes the look with a pout and widened eyes. Jane seems almost impervious to Maura's attempts and denies her again.

Maura grumbles under her breath for the entire morning and refuses to meet Jane's eye and goes so far as to take separate cars to work. Maura barely manages a 'goodbye' as the pair split off in the different directions for their offices.

She spends the day amidst paperwork, which seems to go exceedingly slowly, with no fresh cases coming through autopsy and not seeing Jane at all which is a highly unusual occurrence.

When 5:30 arrived and it was time to leave and get ready for the benefit, she left her office and drove home. Greeted by a cold and empty house, she immediately starts getting ready and by the time she is completely dressed and ready to go, she only has 20 minutes before she is expected at the venue. Maura leaves in her Lexus feeling slightly uneasy about Jane's sudden disappearance, usually, she would have seen Jane at home by the time she left, but before she has a chance to really worry about it, Maura arrives at the hotel where the benefit dinner is being hosted and she pushes her concerns to the back of her mind. Maura is three steps away from the dining hall when she hears her name called out in a voice that Maura thinks she could recognise, even if she was unconscious.

"Maura."

Maura turns around to see Jane dressed so elegantly in a long flowing teal dress. Maura knows how uncomfortable Jane must be feeling at that moment and her heart swells with love for the woman standing before her.

"Jane," Maura breathes out and wraps her arms around Jane, not letting go until she hears Jane clear her throat.

"Thank you Jane," Maura kisses Jane sweetly on the cheek, a 'thank you' and an 'I love you' and a promise to make it up to her later in the night all rolled into one. Maura turns towards the dining hall and enters with Jane at her side and for the first time in her life, Maura enjoys herself at one of these benefits.

~oOo~

Today, Maura had to go to a benefit dinner and she begged Jane to go with her. Jane showed up in the most elegant sort of dress that only Maura ever wears. Maura knows Jane hates wearing dresses and yet she still wore it. Maura loves her.


	6. F is for Flowers

**Disclaimer:** Characters are not mine.

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**The Alphabet Story**

_F is for Flowers_

~oOo~

Maura wakes up in bed, her arms wrapped around Jane's and she smiles serenely. She lies there quietly, in a haze of peacefulness, not willing to wake the beautiful person beneath her. Her head is rested on Jane's chest and the slow rhythmic sound of a heartbeat next to her ear, slowly pulls Maura back into slumber.

The next time Maura does wake though, is a far less pleasant experience than before. She finds that Jane is already out of bed and getting dressed.

"Oh, Hey Maur, I've gotta go into work. Cavanaugh just called and say's its urgent," Jane explains when she notices Maura has woken.

Before Maura can reply, Jane has raced down the stairs without so much as a '_goodbye_'. Maura slumps back into her pillows and closes her eyes, willing the tears gathering under her eyelids away. The tears still fall though, because Jane had forgotten Maura's birthday.

Maura takes her time getting ready; ignoring the pang of hurt she feels when she steps into the shower and smells the shampoo Jane had used earlier. Maura dresses slower than she ever had before in her life and heads downstairs to make herself breakfast. As Maura is readying the coffee machine, Bass slowly lumbers into the kitchen and gives Maura an almost imperceptible nod, but she takes it with a smile. Because it's more than she got from Jane.

When Maura makes it into work an hour later than normal, she makes her way upstairs instead of down to her office. When she arrives at Jane's desk, there is no sign of anyone. Maura slowly makes her way down to the autopsy rooms and the crime lab, hoping for some new case to keep her mind preoccupied. Something new does indeed come through Maura's office and she gratefully spends the entire morning elbow deep in blood, organs and human remains.

When Maura finishes of the autopsy, it's after midday and she wants to go upstairs to see Jane and have lunch together, but she's exhausted and doesn't want to feel the hurt she had felt earlier. So Maura remains in her office. Maura finishes off a quick lunch - a chickpea salad, and then dive's straight into transcribing the copious amount of notes for the case she had just worked on earlier, finalising a report that confirms the victim did _not_ have a suspicious death, and instead died of a heart attack. It takes her a while to finish, because her mind keeps wandering, but eventually Maura can feel a headache approaching, and she decides to make her way outside to get some fresh air.

When Maura makes her way back to her office half an hour later, the door is closed, the lights turned off and the blinds are shut, which was definitely not the ways she had left it. Maura opens the door and flips the light switch. As light brightens the room, a large bouquet of irises – Maura's favourite flower, immediately captures her eyes. Maura picks up the card attached and reads the small note.

"Happy Birthday, Maura."

Maura jumps at the sound of Jane's voice and spins around. When she had focused on the flowers, Maura had missed Jane sitting on the couch against the wall. The shock is evident on Maura's face, and the guilt is evident on Jane's.

"You didn't forget?" Maura asks shakily, still unsure and a lone tear slips down her cheek.

"Oh Maura, I could never forget your birthday," Jane assures her. "I had this huge birthday breakfast planned for you, with pancakes, eggs, bacon, tomatoes, fresh strawberries and coffee using that ridiculous machine you love so much. And then Cavanaugh called the entire homicide squad in for a meeting this morning," Jane explains to Maura, but Maura is still confused.

"But you didn't even say anything this morning?"

"I know, and I regret it now that I know you've been upset all day, but I thought you deserved more than just a quick 'Happy Birthday'. I've organised dinner at your favourite restaurant – that French one you keep talking about," Jane explains.

"Oh Jane, thank you," Maura rests her head on Jane's shoulder as Jane wraps her arms around a slightly sobbing Maura.

"How could you ever believe that I would forget your birthday?" Jane asks Maura quizzically.

"I don't know," Maura answers honestly. But it doesn't matter now because Maura's so happy that she feels as though she is floating.

~oOo~

Today, Maura spent the day upset because it was her birthday and Jane had forgotten. Maura walked into her office in the afternoon and saw a large bouquet of irises, her favourite flower, from Jane. Maura loves her.


	7. G is for Grief

**Disclaimer:** Characters are not mine.

* * *

**The Alphabet Story**

_G is for Grief_

~oOo~

Maura's day had been good until she saw the next case that was coming through her autopsy suite. Her heart starts to race a little faster and her palms become clammy. As she changes into scrubs and a gown, Maura can't seem to stop herself from repeatedly glancing over at the remains already laid out on the table. Maura reads through the case file before putting on gloves and she picks up the first instrument she'll need. The cotton swab shakes slightly along with her hand as she completes the external examination, and then the time comes to start the part of the autopsy that she has been dreading. Maura's hand hovers the scalpel just over the chest, but she can't seem to find the willpower to make the cut.

Because before her is the body of a 15 month old baby who died under suspicious circumstances. This child is the smallest set of remains that has ever come across Maura's own autopsy table. She had observed an autopsy once or twice when the victim was this young, but what she felt then was nothing compared to the emotions coursing through her body at that moment. Maura can feel the tears begin to well up, but before they have the chance to fall, she catches herself. She takes a few deep breaths to calm herself and compartmentalize. As Maura makes the first cut, she hopes it will become easier as she goes, but it doesn't.

Maura looks at the definite signs of neglect in the child, the completely empty stomach, weak bones, emaciated skin, and greasy hair. It troubles her that this sort of thing can happen to children, but she knows it does. Maura has seen it before, many times, but this is the smallest child she's ever had to work on herself. She powers through though, because she wants justice for this young child. Each time she's made a discovery that confirms neglect, her eyes well up with tears, but she has somehow found the strength not to let them fall. It is not until she is holding the tiny heart in her hands that this strength fails her for the first time. Tears fall from her eyes and down her cheeks and she has to step back so they will not fall onto, and contaminate the body.

Maura places the damaged heart that finally gave out in the scales and weighs it. It's not until she has to open the skull to examine the brain that her body freezes up on her. Maura stands over the body of the child, willing herself to get it over with quickly, but she cannot seem to make her body co-operate. She has no idea how long she has been standing there for, but suddenly she is not alone.

"Maura."

She hears Jane's voice next to her ear and feels Jane's body against her back. A hand slowly removes the saw from her grasp and she is gently led away from the autopsy table. Maura walks in a sort of daze towards her office where Jane closes and locks the door, shuts the blinds and sits Maura down. The two women sit on the couch, and Maura curls herself into Jane's side and cries.

"It's okay, Maura. Let it out," Jane soothes Maura quietly.

Maura lets all the tears she had held away escape, and they flow down her cheeks and onto Jane's favourite shirt. The salt in Maura's tears distorts the colour and she knows the shirt will be ruined. As soon as Maura's tears are all gone and she has her sobs under control she speaks in a cracked voice.

"How did you know?" Maura doesn't have to clarify any further, Jane knows immediately what she is talking about.

"I was at the café talking to Ma and I overheard the autopsy techs talking about this body that came through. They mentioned that it was a baby and I knew it'd be hard but I hoped you'd be able to cope with it. It wasn't until I was on my way back to my office when I overheard Suzie telling one of her friends that she saw you sobbing that I knew you needed me," Jane explains to Maura. "I wish I had come sooner," she admits.

~oOo~

Today, Maura worked on the smallest set of remains that she had ever seen. Jane gently took the saw from her hand and guided her back to her office. Maura cried on and ruined Jane's favourite shirt and Jane didn't complain once. Maura loves her.

* * *

**Dedicated to the memory of Lee Thompson Young. RIP.**


	8. H is for Hangover

**Disclaimer: **Characters are not mine.

* * *

**The Alphabet Story**

_H is for Hangover_

~oOo~

Jane wakes up, her mouth and throat feeling as though she'd been swallowing cotton balls. She feels hot and cold and clammy all at the same time and as she roll over, her stomach tells her it's displeased with the motion. Her head is throbbing and she's regretting what she did last night. All she wants is to go back to sleep and away from how she feels, but no matter how hard she tries, sleep won't come.

She groans and she realizes she's not alone when someone places a damp cloth on her forehead and wipes away the old sweat.

"Maura," Jane managers to whimper her girlfriends name through the cotton balls in her throat and the name comes out in a garbled mess.

"Shh Jane, I'm here don't worry," Maura says and Jane listens, because she's too sore and exhausted to argue.

Jane wakes up and realizes she had fallen asleep again. Maura is beside her, stroking Jane's hair continuously, an action Jane would usually find it annoying, but is surprisingly soothed by the repetitive motion which helps block out some of the pain she feels in her body.

"Jane you need to eat," Maura urges and both Jane and her stomach groan at the thought of food. She tries to say no but before she can protest more than the slight shake of her head, Maura has pulled her up to a semi sitting position against the headboard.

The sudden movement, even though it was slight, upsets Jane's stomach and she knows exactly what's going to happen next. Fortunately, so does Maura and a bucket is promptly placed in front of Jane, as she empties the contents of her stomach into it. Maura pushes Jane back against the headboard gingerly and before her head hits the headboard, Jane is asleep again.

Jane is woken again to Maura wiping her forehead with a damp cloth and she realizes she is still in a semi-seated position.

"It's been four hours; you need some food," Maura tries to convince her.

Jane's stomach rolls at the thought, but it is not nearly as bad as before and she shakes her head, dismissing the idea.

"Please. At least have some water?" Maura begs.

Jane can see the pained expression on Maura's face and so she acquiesces. Maura slowly lifts a glass of cool water to Jane's lips and tilts it slightly. Jane swallows greedily and the water does wonders for her mouth and throat and she lies back, feeling slightly better than she had before. Jane turns to Maura who is moving to leave and she can't stop herself from forming the next word that crosses her lips.

"Please stay?"

Maura looks surprised, but immediately does as Jane requests and lies against her, stroking her hair again. It is not long before Jane succumbs to sleep again. When Jane wakes for the fourth time Maura is still with her and draped across her body, undeterred by the smell of alcohol, sweat and vomit Jane's sure is oozing out of her pores. She's feeling better though, and her headache isn't nearly as bad as it was and her stomach is actually growling with hunger.

"Oh, Jane, I'm so sorry for falling asleep," Maura apologizes as she wakes up from her short nap.

As Maura goes down to heat some food, Jane takes a shower to wash away the gross feeling that has overcome her body. When she is sufficiently cleaned, she dresses in some clean pajamas and finds Maura waiting for you with a cup of water and bowl of what looks like chicken soup. Jane smiles gratefully and sits down, prepared to eat for the first time in over 24 hours.

"Thank you."

~oOo~

Today, Jane spent the day in bed suffering because she celebrated a little too much last night and Maura spent her only day off in a fortnight to look after Jane. Jane loves her.


	9. I is for Infant

**Disclaimer:** Characters are not mine.

* * *

**The Alphabet Story**

_I is for Infant_

~oOo~

Jane is cooing at the small little bundle in her arms and she could never have imagined herself so taken with an infant in all her life. She had never had that maternal desire to have her own children, and she had never been the type to go up to strange women's babies and babble at them. Jane didn't think she'd ever even used a baby voice until she first laid eyes on her nephew. Jane had volunteered to babysit TJ for the day with Maura, so Tommy could go to work.

"You're going to grow up strong like your daddy, aren't you?" Jane says to TJ, talking nonsense at the baby, asking questions he couldn't possible answer

"I'll take that spit bubble as a yes then," Jane decides as she wipes it away with the cloth over her shoulder. Jane and Maura spend the day taking turns holding the young boy with, and the infant spends the entire time alternating between sleeping, babbling happily, eating, crying and pooping.

Jane had just finished feeding TJ, who seems to eat as much as his father did when he was a teenager, and was getting ready to burb him over her back. Jane hadn't quite situated the towel though, and TJs spit up runs all down Jane's back and pants. Jane's nose crinkles in disgust and before she knows it, Maura is scooping the baby out of her arms and ushering her towards the bathroom.

"Go on, Jane we'll be fine. Besides, that stinks," Maura says as she cradles TJ in her arms.

Jane showers and quickly as she can, eager to get back to the only boy to have ever truly captured her heart and as she makes her way down the stairs, she can hear Maura talking to the baby.

"Your auntie loves and will protect you and your daddy loves you, your mommy will care for you and so will your grandma. They will all love you forever," Maura talks to TJ in a soft voice.

Jane rounds the corner to see TJ in the bouncer and Maura kneeling over it.

"You love him too, you're his auntie too Maura," Jane assures her.

Maura's head whips around and they smile at each other.

The women relocate the sleeping infant to a darkened room upstairs so the light doesn't disturb him and as TJ sleeps, Jane and Maura use the small window of silence to work on their separate cases side by side at the table in a companionable silence. They work for however long TJ sleeps for, until the cries of the now awake and probably hungry infant permeate the room. Before Jane can push back her chair to tend to the baby, Maura is already halfway up the stairs.

Jane can hear Maura bringing the fussy infant back down to the living room, and watches as she, with one hand, prepares the bottle of formula ready to feed the now shrieking boy.

Maura hushes TJ quickly and efficiently with the bottle and when it is empty, burps him and then places your nephew in the bouncer again.

TJ stays quite for only a few minutes before demanding attention and grumbling. Again, Maura is on her feet and stops the fussing before it turns into louder wails before Jane can even begin to react. When Tommy arrives that evening at seven to pick up TJ, Jane helps him put the baby in the car and waves goodbye. When Jane looks down at Maura she swears she can see her tearing up a little.

~oOo~

Today, Jane babysat her nephew with Maura, and to both of their surprise, Maura was a natural. Jane loves her.


	10. J is for Joking

**Disclaimer:** Characters are not mine.

* * *

**The Alphabet Story**

_J is for Joking_

~oOo~

Maura's still in the autopsy suite, it's well after midday and she hasn't had the chance to eat lunch yet. The Medical Examiner's office has been inundated with new cases. Maura was already behind in paperwork this morning, and now, it's more than tripled. Jane isn't that much better off and the homicide squad is responsible for three of the bodies in the autopsy lab and Maura knew Jane would not be coming home early tonight. A double homicide is just too big of a deal.

Maura can feel the slight hunger pangs in her stomach, now strong enough that she can't ignore them, and she makes the decision to go upstairs and drag Jane to the café if that's what it takes. It turns out, not much persuasion is needed, and the entire team goes down for a break where they all eat as a large group in the café.

Angela prepares enough food to feed a small army, which they almost are. Everyone is talking, joking around, eating and enjoying each other's company so much that Maura misses the arrival of her favorite and most thorough senior criminalist, Susie who has to tap your arm to get your attention.

This is in and of itself disconcerting, because Susie has never disturbed Maura when she was eating lunch with lab results unless they are important. She looks over the findings, and sees that they are. She shows them to Jane, and Frost and Korsak lean in to listen as well.

Maura gave them the breakthrough findings in her long-winded way until she is stopped by a huff and eye roll from Jane.

"Maura, please get on with it, I am so not in the mood for this today," Jane says exasperated.

Maura cuts to the chase, at Jane's insistence and is thanked with nods from Frost and Korsak and quick kiss from Jane. As they are in pursuit of a serial killer based on the results Maura had relayed to them, Maura is left in the café, worrying as she always did, though she always tried to hide it

By the time Jane returns, successful in apprehending the target, Maura had retreated back to her office and Jane signifies her return with a quick text to Maura. As soon as she receives Jane's text message, Maura races upstairs and is relieved to see everyone is safe and home again.

"Jane," Maura lets out a sigh of relief, and it takes all her effort not to run towards Jane and bask in the happiness of her safe return. When everything is wrapped up for the day and all the necessary paperwork has been finished off, a large group workers at BPD; cops, technicians and scientists, decide to celebrate at the local bar, because no one could have imagined closing the case today.

Everyone is joking around, much like at lunch and as soon as Maura contributes to the conversation she knew she had overstepped some invisible social boundary. The look in Jane's eye, and the total silence that enveloped the bar is telling, as everyone looks at her with contempt.

"That's enough the lot of you, get back to your drinks," Jane snaps at everyone, glaring as Frost and Korsak look over at Maura with sympathy. As chatter fills the room again, Maura's eyes stay fixated on her lap, embarrassment clouding her features but as Jane squeezes Maura's knee in support, she looks into those deep chocolate brown eyes and thinks,

_Maybe everything will be okay._

~oOo~

Today, Maura solved a double homicide and everyone went to the local bar to celebrate. Maura made a joke and everyone around her looked at her distastefully. Jane squeezed her knee and snapped at everyone glaring at her. Maura loves her.


	11. K is for Kitchen

**Disclaimer:** Characters are not mine.

* * *

**The Alphabet Story**

_K is for Kitchen_

~oOo~

Maura had had a busy day the day before. Between the cluster of old and new cases, she also had a court appearance and a press conference on the recent death of a well-known and loved local judge. But today is Sunday, Maura's only day off and it doesn't matter that she forgot to set her alarm. She opens her eyes, and the dim room is still too bright, so she flings her arm over her eyes. She blinks ere eyes repeatedly and ever so slowly, her eyes adjust and she begins to take in her surroundings.

Maura doesn't even need to turn her head to know that Jane is already up and out of bed, and has been for some time because her body warmth had long since dissipated, leaving the space cold and empty. Maura rolls over onto her side, facing the bedside table and when her eyes take in the time on the alarm clock, her heart starts to hammer against her chest in a panic. The little green numbers read _10:47_ and Maura knows that the last time she slept this late she was 12 years old and she was sick. Maura takes note of the warm cocoon she had created out of the 1000 count Egyptian cotton bed sheets and her pyjamas, and rationalises that no one would know if she just rested there for a few more minutes.

Those few minutes turned into almost half an hour and when Maura brings herself to look at the alarm clock again, it reads _11:13_. Groaning slightly, Maura forces herself out of bed and towards the bathroom, where she starts the shower and stays under the stream of hot water for as long as she can, before her fingers start turning into prunes and the steam is so thick in the room that its hard to see the wall. She doesn't bother putting on clothes, instead opting for fresh underclothes and her thick fleecy bathrobe before making her way downstairs.

As she gets closer to the bottom of the staircase, Maura frowns, because even though she wasn't expecting any visitors, she can distinctly hear voices coming from the kitchen. Maura realises that its probably just Angela, borrowing the big kitchen to cook up some spectacular meal, but as she draws closer, she can hear that it's just one voice, Jane's, muttering and swearing. Maura peeks around the corner and is greeted by the sight of Jane wrestling with the very expensive and 'complex' coffee machine Maura loves, all the while cursing it.

"Good morning," Maura greets Jane, who jumps slightly and turns around. A frown replaces the initial smile and as Jane redirects her glare to the coffee machine.

"That machine is broken," Jane says disdainfully and begins ranting about the stupidity of the person who invented it, which Maura doesn't pay close attention to, instead deciding to cut her girlfriend off midsentence with a kiss.

Maura moves towards the machine, and within a few seconds, it is humming quietly as it brews a pot of her favourite coffee.

"It would have helped if you switched the power on Jane." Jane rolls her eyes and grumbles under her breath.

As soon as the coffee is ready, Maura pours it into a mug and takes a seat at the breakfast bar, facing the kitchen. As she sits, a plate of poached eggs, bacon and toast is placed in front of her and she looks up startled.

"You had a big day yesterday," Jane explains.

Maura looks down at the breakfast plate, and back up to Jane who is waiting nervously for her response.

"Thank you, I love it," Maura says and before Jane can sigh in relief, Maura starts shovelling the food into her mouth, suddenly starving as she remembers that she hasn't eaten since yesterday morning. The slightly under cooked eggs and slightly burnt bacon has become Maura's favourite breakfast of all time.

~oOo~

Today, Maura woke up extremely late and she went downstairs to the kitchen to see Jane making a coffee using the complex coffee machine that Maura knows Jane hates using. Maura loves her.


	12. L is for Learning

**Disclaimer:** Characters are not mine.

* * *

**The Alphabet Story**

_L is for Learning_

~oOo~

Maura is doubled over and panting, trying to catch her breath before Jane can tell her that her break is over and she has to start again. When the slight wheeze in her chest dissipates, Maura stands up and takes a long drink of water in an attempt to stop the slight burning in her throat and lungs, and the dryness in her mouth.

"Lets go Maur," Jane says and Maura somehow finds the energy to sigh.

The two women are at the gym, the women's only gym a few blocks away from their Beacon Hill home as opposed to the gym located at Boston Police Headquarters. Neither Maura nor Jane wants an audience as Maura tries to learn and practice self-defense from Jane.

Last week, Jane final rid the world of one Charles Hoyt, and it was an unpleasant experience for both women and since then neither woman had gotten much sleep. Incidentally, it was that experience that convinced Jane she should teach Maura some self-defense skills, and though Maura was skeptical at first, she relented when she saw how desperate Jane was.

Maura faced the punching bag and hit it for what could quite possibly be the millionth time today, and immediately Jane adjusts Maura's stance, her shoulder and elbow for the millionth Jane.

"Come on Maura, you punch like a girl," Jane said facetiously and instead of pointing out to Jane that she punched like a girl because, yes, it fact she _was_ a girl, Maura ignored the comment.

"Please, Jane, please can we do something else," Maura begged. "I swear my arms are going to fall off."  
"Really? No 'my humerus bone is going to fall out of my scapula socket'? You must be tired," Jane said and Maura rolled her eyes at Jane's terminology as she nodded her assent. "Okay, yeah, sure Maura."

And with that, the two relocate over to an open space with a few mats on the floor. Maura groans and wished she hadn't said anything as she realizes that Jane plans to make her do hand to hand combat. In preparation for what is surely going to be a far more painful experience than the punching bag, Maura drinks some more water before giving her entire attention to Jane. She watches as Jane first demonstrates, then explains the moves she wants Maura to learn and before she knows it, Maura swings her arms around and slice the air, and while she is still making a few mistakes, she is doing far better at it than she ever did at the punching maneuvers and Jane seems quite pleased with her progress. Maura and Jane spend another hour attempting to wrestle, until it turns more playful and less instructional and eventually they are both on the floor laughing.

"You did good today," Jane said, once she caught her breath. Maura beams with pride, not only for learning something new, but because she wanted to impress Jane more than anything. And Maura is far too ecstatic that she doesn't even bother to correct Jane's grammar.

Sweaty and starving, Maura and Jane leave the gym, and despite knowing how unhealthy it is, Mara lets Jane order takeout and they spend the evening together, eating pizza, watching a cheesy action film Jane loves but Maura thinks is highly improbable nearing impossibility.

~oOo~

Today, Jane was teaching Maura how to defend herself from an attacker. She was sweating more than she ever had before, but refused to stop. She wasn't doing very well but Jane never gave up on her. Maura loves her.


	13. M is for Mischief

**Disclaimer:** Characters are not mine.

**Authors Note:** This chapter is dedicated to the 'Anon' who reviewed the story on 8/1/2013 and gave me yhe idea for this chapter so thank you Anon. This chapter is rated M for sex scenes.

* * *

**The Alphabet Story**

_M is for Mischief_

~oOo~

Maura was sitting at her desk, filling out the multitude of paperwork for three open cases. Days like these were always her least favourite, with no fresh bodies in her autopsy suite, and stuck working on the details for each of the reports. Hours tick by, and Maura can feel a headache growing.

"Hey you," Jane's voice startles Maura out of her reverie and she smiles as she looks up to her girlfriend.

"I bought food," Jane holds up the carton of Chinese take-out.

"Oh, you're a life saver Jane Rizzoli," Maura says as her stomach agrees, loudly.

"I know, your day been slow too?" Jane asks as she hands Maura her food and sat down on the Karim Rashid chair. "Oh my God, I always forget how uncomfortable this chair is," She huffs as she relocates to the infinitely more comfortable sofa.

"Jane, how could you insult my chair, it's a Karim Rashid label," Maura says as if restating the designer proves her point.

"Well it hurts Maura, I'm just glad the guy doesn't make shoes," Jane grumbles.

"Of course he doesn't he's an industrial designer and interior architect Jane. He wouldn't be- oh, you're joking aren't you?" Maura says as understanding washes over her.

"Yep."

They eat in a comfortable silence for the next five minutes, until they finish eating and Maura opens her laptop again.

"Hey no, Maura why are you working, its lunch break," Jane whines.

"I know Jane, but I want to get all three reports finished today and I want to be home at a decent hour tonight. We haven't really seen much of each other this week," Maura says as she continues plugging away at the laptop.

"Ugh, don't remind me," Jane huffs and crosses her arms.

Maura continues working on her laptop, largely ignoring Jane, until she can feel the detective hovering behind her.

"Don't you have whoa–" Maura turns around to see Jane inches away from her and before she can say anything else Jane's lips are on hers, her tongue asking for permission to enter her mouth. Maura parts her lips and the two women are suddenly sharing a heated, passionate kiss filled with days of pent up sexual desire. Maura can feel Jane's hands on her body, on slipping under her shirt, fingers going straight for her already erect nipple and the other hand pushing Maura's panties aside.

"God Maura, you're so wet already," Maura can feel Jane moan against her neck.

"Jane, I've been like this for the past five days," Maura breathlessly manages to point out.

"Well I guess we better fix that then," Jane decides and she slips two fingers inside Maura.

"Jane," Maura exclaims, her body tensing immediately. It isn't long before Maura's feels her muscles clamp around Jane's fingers, and flies over the edge. When Maura finally comes to, Jane leans in kissing her gently.

"That was amazing," Maura says and she flips the two of them around so Jane is leaning against the desk and Maura's body is flush against her. Maura's hands roam around Jane's body familiarising themselves with her curves after five days of waiting. Maura's lips immediately find Jane's sensitive spot on her neck, sucking gently and Maura smiles at Jane's moans of pleasure.

Maura's hands softly caress Jane's breasts and smiles, as Jane's desire makes itself known as her hips start bucking.

"Maura please," Jane begs.

Maura smiles again and immediately moves her fingers slowly down pausing only to undo the belt around her hips before thrusting her fingers in. It takes Jane even less time than it did for Maura to climax, but the effects were no less intense than they could have been.

"You're right, that was amazing," Jane agreed breathlessly. "We should abstain more often if that's the result."

As soon as her limbs were under her own control, Jane's hand gravitated towards Maura's panties again.

"Geez Maura, you're soaking already," Jane exclaimed.

"Five days Jane," Maura reminds pointedly.

"Right, right," Jane muttered as she pushes Maura back into her chair and knelt down in front of her.

No sooner had she pushed Maura's skirt up and leaned forward, there was a brief knocking before the door was pushed open.

"Dr Isles I have the results you asked for," senior criminalist Chang says as she walks into the room.

Maura can feel Jane's warm breath brush against the inside of her thigh and it takes all her effort not to moan.

"Thank you Susie," she manages in a slightly strained voice.

Susie's eyebrows furrow in confusion but she continues anyway. "You were right Dr, we did find elevated levels of norepinephrine in the victims bloodstream and-" Maura stopped listening to the criminalist as the combination of Jane's warm breath and the tickle of her hair distracted her. Maura squeezed her thighs together gently, trying to get the message across to Jane, but either she didn't get it or she didn't care, because the next thing Maura felt was Jane's tongue on her clit.

The yelp Maura let out startled her more than it startled Susie and with a few pleasantries and reassurances that she was fine, Maura dismissed the criminalist.

"Jane," Maura whimpered as Jane's tongue stroked her and before she knew it, Maura was flying over the edge again. It took longer this time, for Maura's muscles to stop quivering and when she could, she lifted her arm to pull Jane towards her.

"What were you thinking Jane?"

~oOo~

Today, Maura was in her office doing paperwork when Jane came by to visit. One thing led to another and when Susie Chang walked into the room to give Maura blood work results, Maura had to keep her cool as Jane was under the desk between Maura's legs, making it very difficult for her to concentrate. Maura loves her.


	14. N is for Nightmare

**Disclaimer:** Characters are not mine.

* * *

**The Alphabet Story**

_N is for Nightmare_

~oOo~

Jane is stuck in the middle of a dream and she knows it. She knows it because her own personal demon is there. But he can't be, because Jane killed him, over three months ago. Before Jane met Maura, all her dreams were about her first encounter with Hoyt, and she would scream and scream and try to get away, just like she had in real life, and that's what made them so real. Before she ended it. But now, with Maura in her life, Jane's dreams are about that monster hurting Maura. It terrifies Jane because it had happened, and because it could have been so much worse and so most nights, Jane's mind went through all the different 'what-ifs'.

Almost every night, Jane goes to sleep and watches Hoyt hurt Maura. Jane begs for it to stop, for him to hurt her instead, and then she turns to threatening. She threatens anything from death, to torture, to humiliation. And then as a final resort Jane bargains. She promises safety, life in prison, no death penalty if he just stops. She hates herself for offering these outs, even if it is just a dream, but Jane would do anything for Maura. And she did, she killed Hoyt.

Right now though, Jane is watching a horrific scene play out before her. Maura, tied to a chair as Hoyt advances on her. Jane struggles and curses and yells, but he never turns around. She hears Maura beg too, pleading for it to stop, pleading to be left alone but it never happens. Some nights, it never seems to end, others, she wakes up quicker. Tonight Jane is blessed and she is being pulled away quickly, she doesn't have to see as much and she can hear Maura's voice in her ear.

"You're fine, you're safe, your home. Everything's okay, we're okay, we're alive. It's over, you finished it remember? You ended it and we're here," Maura's voice is soft and soothing, calming you as it always does and Jane rolls herself over to say thankyou. Again. She looks over at Maura, and immediately notices a bruise blossoming over her cheek. Jane pull back, horrified, knowing that she must have lashed out in her sleep. It wasn't the first time it had happened, and she had hated herself for three days afterward, sleeping on the couch until Maura yelled at her for being stupid.

"Its fine Jane," Maura says immediately, trying to reassure her.  
Jane narrows her eyes, not believing Maura and gets out of bed and stomps down the stairs, ready to fulfil her penance and sleep on the couch, but Maura follows her this time. Usually, Maura would let Jane storm off and mope for the night, but apparently not tonight.

"Jane Clementine Rizzoli!" Maura's voice is a yell and Jane cowers slightly. She hates being 'full-named', a right usually reserved only by her mother, but Maura had started doing it too.

"You get upstairs right now Jane," Maura orders.

Jane looks at Maura's angry posture and then down at the floor.

"Maura, I hurt you," Jane mumbles.

Maura huffs, which is such an un-Maura-like sound that Jane looks up to see the most disgruntled expression on her face.

"It doesn't hurt Jane, its just subcutaneous bruising, it'll go away in a few days and can be covered with makeup easily," Maura's voice is soft now, and has a pleading quality to it. "Please come upstairs. Not sleeping with you hurts more than a bruise ever could."

Jane's resolve crumbles completely when she hears Maura's declaration ad she sighs before getting up and walking over to her.

"What did I do to deserve you?" Jane says as she kisses Maura's bruised cheek as gently as she can manage.

"I assume that's a rhetorical question? Or do you actually want me to answer it?" Maura asks.  
Jane laughs and the two walk up the stairs, hand in hand, back to bed and a dreamless sleep.

~oOo~

Today, Jane woke up in the middle of the night after a nightmare. She heard Maura's soothing voice murmuring in her ear to ground her. Then when Jane tried to sleep on the couch, Maura all but drag her back upstairs. Jane loves her.


	15. O is for Ocean

**Disclaimer:** Characters are not mine.

* * *

**The Alphabet Story**

_O is for Ocean_

~oOo~

Jane is celebrating her first year anniversary with Maura and they're spending it away at the ocean. Their phones are turned off and no one they know can contact them for anything. Even though they'd only been away for a day and a half, so far it had been bliss. Until Jane suggested a whale watching trip.

Jane honestly had no idea she would be affronted with the fear and shock currently gracing Maura's features and Jane didn't know exactly what triggered the reaction. Maura has no problem water; they'd been in the pool and spa together and Maura has no problem with boats; Jane had heard stories of cruises and trips with old exes. That only leaves one factor.

"Are you afraid of whales?" Jane asks, trying her best to keep a straight face.

"That's actually quite a real fear Jane. It's called cetaceaphobia," Maura says with disapproval in her voice that let's Jane know she wasn't successful in hiding her amusement. But Jane knows Maura and notices the slight quiver in her voice.

"Is that a yes?" Jane asks tentatively, a giggle forming behind her lips.

"No, Jane you know that. There's even a large portrait of a pod of whales at home remember?" Maura says.

Jane giggles and before she can stop it, she's in full-blown laughter, as is Maura. As soon as the pair stops laughing and catch their breaths, Jane continues to question Maura.

"Well then, what is it?"

"Boats Jane," Maura say matter-of-factly.

Jane is utterly confused by her girlfriend's answer, because she knows Maura has been on them before.

"But you've been on plenty of boats before," Jane states and as she says this, Maura looks at her like she's grown two heads.

"No, those were ships Jane. Cruise liners. Boats are small and can capsize easily and are more likely to sink. Cruise ships are not, they're big and steady and don't sway and are less likely to run aground," Maura explains in one breath and apparently even thinking about is terrifying, because fear is etched all over her face.

"Maura, it will be fine. You'll have a life jacket, it will be an accredited and fully licensed captain and you won't be alone," Jane tries to reassure her, but she can she she's not getting anywhere.

"You can even be the captain tonight. Whatever you want, you get," Jane offers, knowing this is one of the only things Maura would possibly be inclined to agree with.

A look of deliberation flitters across Maura's face before she relents. "Fine."

It doesn't take long to get to the docks and even after Jane had suited Maura up in a life vest, checked the captain's license and registration, Maura was starting to reconsider.

"Jane, look how much it sways. There's even a little bit of rust there," Maura says.

Jane rolls her eyes; because the bit of rust Maura is pointing at, is actually algae. Jane assures Maura again, for the fiftieth time, that everything will be fine, and even tries to prove it by stepping onto the boat first. It takes a few more minutes of assurances before Maura finally acquiesces and steps onto the boat.

Twenty minutes later the boat, with Maura, Jane and 12 other people are out in the open ocean and Jane is watching the other tourists watch the pods of whales swim by. Maura however, is huddled into Jane's side, head tucked into the nook of her shoulder and arms wrapped around Jane like a vice.

"Maura look," Jane says, nudging Maura gently, coaxing her to look up.

Maura slowly raises her head, eyes not leaving Jane's, but when they do, Maura realises how far out the boat is and seems somewhat placated by the fact that they are unlikely to hit a reef or sandbar. The two women both rise to their feet and join the others at the high railing at the sides of the boat.

"You finally made it," A kind looking older man looks at Maura with a friendly smile, which makes Maura blush in embarrassment.

"You owe me five bucks, Lou; I told you this one was a fighter," the man says to his petite wife standing beside him.

The trip is enjoyable overall, because once Maura made it to the side of the boat and could see the whales; she was captivated by the sight and barely noticed anything else.

Jane had never really seen Maura lose control over any emotion like she had in the hotel room when Jane suggested whale watching, and then on the boat, but that night in the hotel room, Maura was definitely the captain in control, and Jane enjoyed every minute of it.

~oOo~

Today, Jane was away at the ocean celebrating her first year anniversary with Maura, who agreed to go whale watching, even though she is terrified of small boats. Jane loves her.


	16. P is for Protective

**Disclaimer:** Characters are not mine.

* * *

**The Alphabet Story**

_P is for Protective_

~oOo~

Maura is just finishing off an autopsy as it approaches lunchtime. Maura finishes up at a completely reasonable rate - _not_ slowly, as Jane always complains she is. She cleans the instruments and puts everything away, including the body in its designated cold storage draw, or 'dead people fridge' as Jane constantly referred to it, so much so that Maura had stopped correcting her. Maura prepares the documents she will need for the afternoon, to transcribe the autopsy results she recorded, analyse the lab results and blood works and all the other small details that are included in the report.

She then changes out of the scrubs that she insists makes her look like a garbage truck driver but Jane says make her look '_sexy as hell_'. Then she makes her way to the elevator and presses the button that will take her up to the fifth floor where the homicide squad, and Jane, was located.

Maura steps off the elevator and is about to round the corner into the room when she hears her name mentioned. She recognises the voice immediately, Detective Crowe, a detective Maura had never particularly liked, but had always been civil towards. She hears another voice, one she can't place but it is evident from their tone, that they have been mocking her.

"Nah, Doctor Death's the bottom; Rizzoli's gotta be the top, she's like a dude."  
As soon as Maura hears those words, she knows exactly what they are talking about and she is torn between going back to her office or rounding the corner and telling the detectives exactly what she really thinks of them. It turns out, Jane makes her decision for her, as the detectives' laughter suddenly stop and the subsequent awkwardness can almost be felt through the wall.

"What did you just say?" Jane's angry tone rings out clearly and just as Maura goes to round the corner, ready to calm her down, she feels a hand on her shoulder. She turns to see Jane's partner and her friend, Frost give her a silent motion to stay put and wait.

Maura listens as the two detectives deny talking about her own sex life and then the sharp intake of breath undoubtedly made by a very furious Jane Rizzoli.

"Firstly, it's none of your business what your fellow homicide detective does when at home and secondly, it's certainly not your place to discuss the sex life of the Chief Medical Examiner of Massachusetts and what she does at home either. And if I hear either of you ever utter another word about anybody's sex life ever again, yours included, you'll wish you hadn't," Jane threatens and both Maura and Frost know that it is taking Jane's entire reserve of energy not to castrate the two detectives right then and there.

There's shuffling and suddenly, Maura is being knocked over by a tall, lanky, dark-haired detective

"Shit Maura, you were listening?" Jane says anxiously as she helps Maura to her feet. "Sorry," she adds.

"Yeah, I was Jane. Thank you," Maura says, refraining from reprimanding Jane for swearing. She takes in the utterly shocked and confused expression on Jane's face and clarifies.

"For being protective."

~oOo~

Today, Maura overheard two detectives bitching about her and then she heard Jane defending you. Maura loves her.


End file.
